Pen



Jim .63 19.4.2.'- l v|=. A. scHREiNER v A2,269,232

-. I .PEN Filed May 26, 194i l v l', l

LJNITlSzDf` STATE Patented Jan. 6, 1942 v PEN Frank A. Schreiner, Chicago, Ill. Application May 26, 1941, Serial No. 395,261 claims.y (erizo-42) This invention relates to a pen andl more particularlyto a fountain penprovided with an ink concentrate, a reservoir for water,4 and a constructed to supply water to the ink concentrate y as needed for Writing.

Pens have been prepared vheretofore Vwhich have been designed to be filled with water and tudlnal narrow' slot-24 extending from they-front of the container or cartridge a substantial distance to the rear. The dimensions and location f y ofthe slot 24 are vof considerable importance.

to operate under suchconditions on an ink con-- centrate.` The previous pens have been so constructed that the passageways quickly became clogged andthe concentrate no longer available. I'he present pen is so constructed thatv ink is made only as required for writing and no substantial quantity of unused ink, as distinguished from ink concentrate, ever remains in the pen.

'Ihe invention is illustrated in the drawing in which Figure 1 is a plan view of the pen; Figure 2 is a side View of the forward portion of the pen; Figure 3 is a bottom view of the same portion; Figure 4 is a fragmentary longitudinal section of the pen; Figure 5 is a transverse section taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 4; and Figure 6 is a fragmentary plan view of the ink concentrate container.

As shown in the drawing, the pen comprises 4end of the sack I3 is secured.

The feed member has an elongated forward extension I5 which closely engages the pen point I6 and the nose I1 of which extends nearly to the tip I8 of the pen point. An opening 28 may be provided near the front end of the feed member. The pen point I6 is made of the usuall flexible metal and is provided with the customary slit dividing the end of the pen point and extending rearwardly to the opening I9. The channel I2 of the feed member extends from the reservoir provided Iby the sack I3 up to and over the opening I9 and over a substantial portion of the slit 20.

`The feed member II is annular inform and centrally locatedtherein is an ink container 2I of any suitable material but preferably of al suitable plastic unaffected by ink such as pyralin or the like. This ink container is filled with a suitable ink concentrate or powder 22. It is closed at its rear end by any suitable form of plug 23 and is provided at the top with a longi- As willbe noted, the ink container and accordingly the slot are locatedv on the yopposite side of the pen4 point from the channel I2 so that water can pass into the ink only4 after passing `through the'small opening I9 in the'pe'n point,

r these dimensions are for a continuous elongated 'or between the individual points of the pen when they are spread apart along the slit 20.' jIn addition, however, the size of the'open'ing in the ink container must be correlated to the surface tension characteristics of the container, of the ink, and of the lpen point, in such manner that an excessive quantity of water will not be drawn into the ink container by surface tension or capillarity. If the slot 24 is too wide, water will be drawn into the container by the ink and an undesirably large quantity of liquid ink will be manufactured duringwriting. On drying, this ink will clog thel opening I2. By making the opening smaller, it has been found that clogging does not occur. For ordinary purposes with the usual pen point materials, the usual ink powder, and a plastic material such as pyralin as the container for the ink, the slot should not be more than 0.007 inch across and it is preferred to make it approximately 0.005 inch across. In general the slot should not be less than 0.003 inch across on the average. It should be understood that slot and, if it is desired to have disconnected rounder openings, the dimensions may be somewhat increased. It is preferred, however, to use a single continuous slot of the dimensions mentioned.

In using the pen container 2I is filled with powdered ink 22 and is placed in the assembly. The reservoir is then filled with water 26 in the usual manner as, for example, by a lever mechanism 25, after which the pen is employed for writing in the usual manner. When the tip I8 of the pen is pressed upon the writing surface the two ends* of v the pen are spread, causing the slit 20 'to widen. This widening draws water from the channel I2 and the opening I9 into the slit 20 and causes it to engage the walls of the slot 34. Under these conditions it picks up suilcient ink powder from the container to form` a suitable Writing ink which is immediately supl ink concentrate to make approximately 8 ozrof assenso nula ink end. therefore, n single eontniner win furnish the ink supply of many months for the A ordinary individual and, in many caseswi1l provide for several years use of ink.

When the cartridge has been exhausted it may be replaced readily, but the whole is so inexpensive that it can be manufactured and sold at retail for less than the cost of 8 oz. of good fluid ink and, therefore. in many cases the entire assembly can be discarded when the ink has become exhausted. For this reason it is quite suitable to employ a stainless steel pen point furnished with a tip of suitable noncorrosive metal such as the so called iridium. 'I'hese points have an eil'ective life corresponding in general to the ink supply of the pen.

It will be understood of course that the feed member Il and the cartridge 2l effectively close the neck of the body of the pen, and that the cartridge 2| effectively seals the water within the sack Il except for the improvement thereof through the channel I2 as indicated. If desired, the feed member may be made as a unit to replace the feed member inv any standard pen. In such case it would generally be made somewhat smaller and provided with suitable interlock means such as screw threads.

The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only, and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. Apen assembly comprising a slit pen point. means for feeding water to one surface of the pen point adjacent the slit, and an ink cartridge on the other side of the pen point, the `cartridge being provided with a narrow opening overlapping the slit.

2. A-pen assembly as set forth in claim 1, in which the opening in 'the container is an elongated longitudinal slot sutllciently narrow to prevent substantial absorption of water by the ink in the container and wide enough to furnish ink to the pen.

3. A pen assembly comprising a slit pen point, means for feeding water to one surface of the pen point adjacent the slit, and an ink cartridge on the other side of the pen point, the cartridge being provided with a narrow elongated slot overlapping the slit in the pen point, the width of the slot being not substantially less than 0.003 inch and not substantially more than 0.007 inch.

4. Aslitted pen point comprising a body portion, a water reservoir',- a pen point, a container, an ink concentrate within the container, means for supplying Jwater from the reservoir to the upper surface of the pen point, and an opening in the container for the ink concentrate on the opposite side of the pen point.

5. A pen as set forth in claim 4, in which the opening in the ink concentrate container is a narrow elongated slot overlapping the slit in the pen point.

FRANK A. SCHREINER. 

